ELLE 25

Desperate for a cultural reboot? Look no further than ELLE's annual high-to-low roundup of fall's must-watch, must-listen, must-know happenings: Tolstoy's big-screen revival; Ai Weiwei's American arrival. And when election-cycle burnout sets in, we've got the escapist treats you crave: the nighttime soap you can sing along to and Garrett Hedlund's big reveal

MEET THE (EVEN MORE) MODERN FAMILY: MY TWO DADS

MEET THE (EVEN MORE) MODERN FAMILY: MY TWO DADS

In Glee and American Horror Story cocreator Ryan Murphy’s The New Normal (NBC), a young waitress, Goldie, flees the Midwest with her eight-year-old daughter—to the chagrin of her brassy, conservative, wildly xenophobic grandmother (Ellen Barkin, incredibly)—and becomes a surrogate for a wealthy Beverly Hills gay couple, played by The Book of Mormon’s Andrew Rannells and The Hangover’s Justin Bartha. Despite coinciding with a very gay-rights-relevant election season, Murphy insists, “It’s not propaganda. I just want to entertain people, to create characters everyone will love. If in the process people become informed or changed, then we’re lucky.” And love them you will: Barkin’s razor-tongued sparring with nearly everyone on the show—including The Real Housewives of Atlanta star NeNe Leakes as Rannells’ character’s assistant—is solid gold, but it’s the endearing moments between Goldie, her daughter, and two dedicated, loving men who simply want to experience the joy of parenthood that will move viewers most, politically or otherwise. —Seth Plattner

THIS SEASON, GO BIG OR GO HOME: SIZE MATTERS

THIS SEASON, GO BIG OR GO HOME: SIZE MATTERS

If the fact that Spanx inventor Sara Blakely has sold enough suck-it-in-wear to join the billionaires’ club is any indication, fashion has been on a formfitting kick for the last several years: Skinny jeans, bandage dresses, you get the picture. That’s all about to change, though, as the silhouette that went down the runway for fall was unapologetically oversize: At Céline, coats so big they looked like children’s dress-up props. At Gucci, pants so flared they swung into a room 30 seconds before the wearer. At Marc Jacobs, Cat in the Hat toppers big enough to take a catnap in. And unlike seasons past, these exaggerated pieces weren’t shown in contrast to slimmer separates. At Proenza Schouler, for instance, a boxy coat was balanced with equally generous pleat-front, wide-leg trousers, and at Marc Jacobs, those aforementioned hats were merely the icing on already larger-than-life ensembles. Should you need some coaxing into this new silhouette, remember the old cliché about leaving something to the imagination. Now’s the time to showcase the excellent collarbone, the dainty wrist. (At the very least, your circulatory system will thank you.) —Amanda FitzSimons